New School Board members sworn in for Newport News; but legal contests pending

NEWPORT NEWS — A month after a tightly fought election contest, newcomers Douglas Brown and Gary B. Hunter along with incumbents Jeff Stodghill and Carlton Ashby took the oath of office for the Newport News School Board on Tuesday.

The May 6 vote was among the tightest municipal elections in recent history, with all candidates separated by 55 votes or less.

In two races, legal contests to the election are still pending by the losing candidates, Betty Dixon in the Central District, who opposed Stodghill, and Pricillia Burnett in the North District, who fell short in her race against Brown. While the new members were sworn in Tuesday evening, their terms do not actually begin until July.

Their ceremony was attended by a host of current and former elected officials, including former Newport News Mayor Joe Frank, Sheriff Gabe Morgan and former School Board members Rick Donaldson and John McMillan.

Burnett was on hand for her last scheduled meeting on the board after the oath ceremony. She was recognized by School Board Chairman Carlton Ashby with a plaque.

"We thank you so, so much for all of your dedication and devotion," Ashby said. Burnett thanked her fellow board members and said, "It's been a great four years, the things I've learned I will be able to take with me."

When the Daily Press asked afterward if she was confident this was her last board meeting, Burnett said, "I would say, you never know what the future holds, but I will say, if I had not lost, I could not challenge the system, and the system needed to be challenged.

"There were too many inconsistencies. It is just unreal, it is really unreal," she said.

"The people who I ran against didn't do anything wrong. This is against the process," Burnett said, referring to her legal contest.

Shortly after the May 6 election, Rick Jones Jr., who ran against Hunter for the at-large seat, filed a recount petition with Newport News Circuit Court after an audit showed he lost the race by 40 votes. The recount performed last week verified Hunter's victory but trimmed his margin to 38 votes.

Burnett and Dixon were not eligible for recounts, however, because their margin of defeat exceeded 1 percent.